Charles Lewinsky

* 14 April 1946, Swiss, author & screenwriter

Since I read 'The stutterer' in a summer holyday, I was a huge fan of Charles Lewinsky, an acclaimed Swiss author and screenwriter. The novel is a book about the power of language, both philosophical and playful. Because of a 'writerly carelessness', Mr. Stärkle, a stutterer who trusts entirely in the power of the written word, is put into jail. Using letters and invented stories, he tries to win over the people who have a say over his life behind bars. I was super excited to meet the master brain behind this dark comedy. The meeting turned out to be one of the most peculiar I have ever had. Could I have guessed that?

Charles greets me in front of his house wearing a jogging suit. While he gives me about one minute to photograph his hands, he writes on a computer keyboard, his working tool: "Taking pictures is stupid". And that was it. Totally immune to my charm, he went back inside and didn't let me take his portrait, because I didn’t mention it beforehand. My mistake. His answer to the question "What makes you creative", on the other hand, I like very much.

Charles lives with his wife, a graphic artist, in Zurich.
Source: Diogenes.ch, Wikipedia